Oreo cookies changed for the worse?

[shadyJ]

Probably not many care here, but to those who do, have you noticed a change in the flavor and texture of regular Oreo cookies? The last couple packages I have purchased of Oreos seem really "off", these have been purchased in mid January and a few days ago. I know this is not just me because others have tasted this too. Anyone know if the recipe has been changed? These cookies are not very good, if this is the way Oreos are going to be for now on, I am done with them. To those who know what's going on, do you know if this extends to the other types of Oreos, like the golden ones, or the double stuffed?

 

[Patrukas777]

they still taste good in shakes

 

[sawzalot]

I would check the filling and make sure it is still there, both Peyton and Eli finished their football early and may have been some what bored

 

[Midwesthonky]

I hadn't noticed. The last package I bought was back in December or November.

There is an effort going on by some brands to cut/reduce salt, cholesterol, fat, etc. So they may be making some changes to the recipe.

Did you by chance buy a different type? I see they off some now with Organic Flour and Sugar, Mint flavored, Reduced Fat (I can see this version having an off flavor), Chocolate Fudge Sundae Cream, etc.

Grab any of those by chance? I've done it before when the many variations get mixed up or I am in a hurry or the offspring are acting up. Grab the wrong version and it just doesn't live up to the original.

 

[MinusTheBear]

I doubt they have changed their recipe but it can't hurt to email the company about it. If they haven't changed their recipe I would recommend buying them from a different store and look at the dates on the packaging. Perhaps the store you are buying them from have been sitting on the shelf too long and are stale.

 

[Patrukas777]

because of you (OP), i went to Jack in the Box today and got one of their Oreo Milk Shakes. The oreo's still taste like oreo's to me

 

[shadyJ]

The cookies were bought and eaten well before their sell-by dates. And no, they were regular Oreo cookies, not low-fat or any other kind. I'll have to try some from a different store, maybe I can try to get some with sell-by dates which are spaced far apart to see if that has an impact.

 

[Chu Gai]

If you still have the package, contact the company using their toll free number and complain. At the very least you'll get coupons for additional bags.

 

[shadyJ]

If you still have the package, contact the company using their toll free number and complain. At the very least you'll get coupons for additional bags.

Maybe I should do this, not for free stuff, but to see how they respond. My real concern is has the formula changed, and is it going to stay that way. I don't want free cookies if they are as bad as the last couple packages.

 

[Chu Gai]

Maybe I should do this, not for free stuff, but to see how they respond. My real concern is has the formula changed, and is it going to stay that way. I don't want free cookies if they are as bad as the last couple packages.

Well, there's no way the company is going to know if they're putting out a product that the consumer has issues with unless you do complain. The information you provide that comes from the packaging is recorded by the person you speak with and that in turn goes into a central database of sorts. There it can be sliced and diced in a variety of ways to determine whether there are correlations between your complaint and things like where the product was made, when it was made, raw materials, etc. I do have a couple of contacts in the food industry (competitors on a large scale are always analyzing and evaluating each other's products) and I'll make some inquiries on your behalf.

Now, there are some things that you may or may not know about the cookie and cracker industry. Formulas do change from time to time and the composition percentages of the recipe ingredients are not defined like you see written in something like your favorite one for say oatmeal/raisin cookies. The manufacture of let's say the wafers is not a perfect process. By that I mean a production run will not result in 100% perfectly shaped wafers. There will be broken ones and sundry crumbs. There will also be instances where something went awry in the baking.

So, what the manufacturers do is they gather up all these defects and use them for other purposes. Maybe they'll be sorted and sifted a particular way and be sold to ice cream manufacturers. Maybe they'll be sold to the consumer in your favorite store as toppings. And very often, they are reground and reincoroporated back into Oreos. So, when I said the formulas are not written in stone, one thing that means is that the forumulas allow for a certain percentage of regrind material. How much depends upon the nature of the regrind.

As to whether these changes can be detected by the consumer, well, sometimes. Large companies, when they're contemplating making some formulation changes actually contract with outside sources who are trained food testers. Now, besides giving the company feedback on how the modified product varies from a perfect batch, these testers are so good, and I do mean GOOD, that not only can they tell you if the product contains regrind but they can estimate how much and get this...they can tell from what factory the regrind came from!

So, complain. It's your right.

 

[shadyJ]

Yeah, that's a good idea, I will call them, and I still have the last package I bought with cookies still in it. I couldn't finish the cookies, but I haven't thrown it away yet. I will give them a call in a couple hours, just to let them know, but I don't expect they will let me know anything serious, like if there was indeed a formula change. I know that there can be variances in process of making these these, I've tasted differences before, but they are usually similar enough to be delicious. Not the last two packages though, and since I bought them over the span of a month from two different stores, I am worried that the manufacturer altered the formula, perhaps to cut costs.

Thanks for the post, it was an informative read!

 

[Chu Gai]

Yeah, that's a good idea, I will call them, and I still have the last package I bought with cookies still in it. I couldn't finish the cookies, but I haven't thrown it away yet. I will give them a call in a couple hours, just to let them know, but I don't expect they will let me know anything serious, like if there was indeed a formula change. I know that there can be variances in process of making these these, I've tasted differences before, but they are usually similar enough to be delicious. Not the last two packages though, and since I bought them over the span of a month from two different stores, I am worried that the manufacturer altered the formula, perhaps to cut costs.

Thanks for the post, it was an informative read!

The person you call is a customer service representative. It's highly unlikely if not impossible that they know anything about formula changes. Their job is to resolve your situation as rapidly as possible which invariably means three things:

record your complaint
get your mailing address and other particulars
send you compensation

An unhappy consumer not only can become a former consumer, but also affect other people's purchasing decisions. Multiply that and you've got lost sales. The reason they want to deal with your phone call as quickly as possible has to do with nothing more than time is money.

I've complained about products before and there has not been one instance where I've been unhappy about the resolution. For example, not too long ago I purchased I believe it was Palmolive Dishwashing detergent, orange scent. I don't have a particular brand loyalty and am driven by price and the scent. I happen to like the smell of oranges. However, when I opened the bottle, the scent to me was that of licorice. I'm not a big fan of licorice. I called, complained, and received two coupons for free bottles of the same size which I used to buy something other than orange.

 

[anocer]

I notice this often with the few processed food products I purchase.

One in particular in chocolate bars, like Crunch bars. Sometimes the chocolate is just AMAZING, sometimes its sort of just ok.

I think this has to do with ingredient sourcing. Such a large company must have a variety of sources from around the world for their ingredients and there is bound to be variance in the end result from a qualitative perspective.

Damnit, now I want some Oreos! My favorites are the white fudge covered ones.

 

[Chu Gai]

I notice this often with the few processed food products I purchase.

One in particular in chocolate bars, like Crunch bars. Sometimes the chocolate is just AMAZING, sometimes its sort of just ok.

I think this has to do with ingredient sourcing. Such a large company must have a variety of sources from around the world for their ingredients and there is bound to be variance in the end result from a qualitative perspective.

Damnit, now I want some Oreos! My favorites are the white fudge covered ones.

For large companies with large distributions, sourcing of raw materials is controlled and so is QC/QA. That's not to say screw ups don't occur and even negligence. I mean if you heard about the real reason why the Skippy Peanut Butter recall occured, you'd be horrified. One thing manufacturers can't control is what happens to the product when it leaves their control. Storage conditions in the distribution centers, rail cars, trucks, supermarkets, etc. can greatly affect product quality. One thing you can try with the Oreos though is just fry them. Frying makes everything taste good!